Turning a bad day into a thankful one

[O]

Obeisance [o-bey-sance]
Dictionary meaning: A gesture expressing deferential respect, such as a bow or curtsy.

Jentionary meaning:
I will go ahead and admit it now, I judge people. What they wear, how they handle themselves under pressure, how they talk and even how they walk. It is in my nature to judge and I will not deny it.

I just do not like when people make it a point to say that judging someone takes away from seeing the 'real' person inside. If anything a judgment is a mental note that you are taking the time to pay attention to that person and what they stand for. If you are being judged, great! It shows that if the person judging you wishes, they will take the time to see the 'real' you that you strive for others to see.

For that, I say that we show obeisance to the people that judge us.

I had one of the worst days that I have had in a long time today. It was one of those days where you wake up and everything that can possibly go wrong seems to find its way into everything you do. One misunderstanding leads to another and you find yourself pissed off at everything and everyone for no logical reason. I felt like that today, until my attitude was knocked down to size.

This is little me with a brace on my foot.
Unfortunately I still have to wear a brace
from time to time when it starts hurting.

I was born premature and have had many complications, one of which was a club foot. For those of you who are unaware of what a club foot is, it can be described as when the tendons in the leg and foot are shorter than usual causing the foot to pull in an abnormal position (in like a golf club). I have had multiple surgeries at a young age to fix this and thankfully they were successful. The only remaining problem is the arthritis in my ankle.

Arthritis can be painful. Today, for some reason, it hurt like you would not believe so I was limping. I did not think anything of it considering this is my semi-normal walk
— until I saw two young men making fun of me.

In that instant the pissed off feeling I had been holding above my head all day was knocked right from under that limp of mine. Those two young men that were making fun of me know nothing about me. Nor do they care enough to take the time to understand why I was limping.

I have to be honest with myself in moments like this. I would judge someone that was limping just as those two were judging me today. I have to give them some respect for making me come full circle in remembering that I do have things to be thankful for when I am having a bad day. One of which is to be thankful that I am walking each day. Just for that, I can show obeisance to myself and remember to keep positive thoughts in my mind when my day is feeling a little more gray than usual.